The Zone and interruptions

Jan 6, 2016•
4 min read

human-factors

Sometimes we get to feel this desperate need of getting into the zone. We know how of a geniuses we are and we are fully conscious that if we are let in our own world and dive in to the zone, oh boy, it will be incredible!
Well… most of times it’s not true. I’m not confusing the preference for (enough) silence, a quite office and relaxed enviromnet with this need of getting into the zone.
The zone most of the times leads us to go off-scope, to write more and think less and to be more an individual than a teammate.

This is what Uncle Bob has to say about this:

THE FLOW ZONE

Much has been written about the hyper-productive state known as “flow.” Some programmers call it “the Zone.” Whatever it is called, you are probably familiar with it. It is the highly focused, tunnel-vision state of consciousness that programmers can get into while they write code. In this state they feel productive. In this state they feel infallible. And so they desire to attain that state, and often measure their self-worth by how much time they can spend there.
Here’s a little hint from someone whose been there and back: Avoid the Zone. This state of consciousness is not really hyper-productive and is certainly not infallible. It’s really just a mild meditative state in which certain rational faculties are diminished in favor of a sense of speed.
Let me be clear about this. You will write more code in the Zone. If you are practicing TDD, you will go around the red/green/refactor loop more quickly. And you will feel a mild euphoria or a sense of conquest. The problem is that you lose some of the big picture while you are in the Zone, so you will likely make decisions that you will later have to go back and reverse. Code written in the Zone may come out faster, but you’ll be going back to visit it more.
Nowadays when I feel myself slipping into the Zone, I walk away for a few minutes. I clear my head by answering a few emails or looking at some tweets. If it’s close enough to noon, I’ll break for lunch. If I’m working on a team, I’ll find a pair partner.
One of the big benefits of pair programming is that it is virtually impossible for a pair to enter the Zone. The Zone is an uncommunicative state, while pairing requires intense and constant communication. Indeed, one of the complaints I often hear about pairing is that it blocks entry into the Zone. Good! The Zone is not where you want to be.
Well, that’s not quite true. There are times when the Zone is exactly where you want to be. When you are practicing. But we’ll talk about that in another chapter.

INTERRUPTIONS

Visualize yourself as you are coding at your workstation. How do you respond when someone asks you a question? Do you snap at them? Do you glare? Does your body-language tell them to go away because you are busy? In short, are you rude? Or, do you stop what you are doing and politely help someone who is stuck? Do you treat them as you would have them treat you if you were stuck?
The rude response often comes from the Zone. You may resent being dragged out of the Zone, or you may resent someone interfering with your attempt to enter the Zone. Either way, the rudeness often comes from your relationship to the Zone.
Sometimes, however, it’s not the Zone that’s at fault, it’s just that you are trying to understand something complicated that requires concentration. There are several solutions to this.
Pairing can be very helpful as a way to deal with interruptions. Your pair partner can hold the context of the problem at hand, while you deal with a phone call, or a question from a coworker. When you return to your pair partner, he quickly helps you reconstruct the mental context you had before the interruption.
TDD is another big help. If you have a failing test, that test holds the context of where you are. You can return to it after an interruption and continue to make that failing test pass.
In the end, of course, there will be interruptions that distract you and cause you to lose time. When they happen, remember that next time you may be the one who needs to interrupt someone else. So the professional attitude is a polite willingness to be helpful.